Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the invention generally relate to lining an open hole section or sections of a wellbore. More specifically, embodiments of the invention relate to apparatus and methods for lining an open hole section or sections of a wellbore to form a junction where a lateral wellbore may be formed.
Description of the Related Art
Lateral wellbores are routinely used to more effectively and efficiently access hydrocarbon-bearing formations. Typically, the lateral wellbores are formed from a window that is formed in the casing of a central or primary wellbore, typically referred to as a junction. However, in some drilling applications, the casing may not extend completely along the primary wellbore due to costs, complexity, among other factors, and production is facilitated by an open hole wellbore that is not completely cased.
When forming a lateral wellbore in an open hole environment, it is difficult to maintain stability due to erosion at the junction. This instability compromises depth control for selective intervention, isolation and production. For example, it is difficult to maintain zonal isolation between formations and/or multiple lateral wellbores without having a known inside diameter where a seal may be positioned.
There is a need therefore, for an improvement in the integrity of the wellbore that facilitates lateral wellbore formation and a known sealing surface without using expensive and complex cased hole design techniques.